As the industrial complex in the United States and abroad has grown over the last century, so has the demand for reliable means for transporting electricity, communications signals, and fluid media. Early constructions of power lines and pipeline systems proliferated, but they have not been without attendant unreliability and lack of service durability. For example, overhead insulated power lines have been susceptible to wear and abrasion from trees. Sandpaper-type wrappings have been attempted to counter these effects. Windings of fiberglass and rubber have been applied to protect underwater-type cables and conduits from rocks, coral, and seawater. Braided metal and plastic sheathings have been developed to protect certain types of cables and hoses; however, these have been bulky and too rigid for many applications. Narrow bands of rigid materials have been developed for reducing the friction between a hose and an abrasive surface by placing the bands at regular intervals along the length of a hose; however, exposure of the unbanded surface area of these hoses to the elements and to chemicals continues to be problematic.
In certain industries, such as the airline industry, fuel hoses and electrical cables, encased only in rubber or other soft insulating materials, must be pulled and dragged across abrasive surfaces, such as concrete and asphalt, to service aircraft. In many airports, the hose and/or cable must be moved over an abrasive service many times during a single day. The surface may be wet or have gasoline or chemicals thereon. The wear on conventional hoses causes frequent replacement to be necessary. Substantial annual costs to replace worn cables and hoses have thus been common. Further, constant exposure to the elements and to ultraviolet radiation accelerates the interval between replacements. Since these cables and hoses are produced to meet commercial federal industry safety standards, costs of $15 per foot, or more, are not uncommon. Yet, there has not heretofore been an effective, practical, solution to this problem.
In the construction and heavy equipment industry, electrical cables and hydraulic lines are constantly subjected to abrasion as the cables and lines slide back and forth against unclean equipment surfaces under constant exposure to the elements and ultraviolet radiation. The same is true in the transportation industry, where for example, mooring lines for large and small watercraft are continuously being dragged or pulled about in docking. These are just a few of the many industries where lengths of cable, hose, rope, etc. are frequently replaced due to premature wear and deterioration. Yet, there has not heretofore been an effective, practical, solution to these problems.